Kumar Mangalam Birla, the chairman of Vodafone Idea, announced that the company intends to make substantial investments in the forthcoming quarters for the expansion of its 5G network and the enhancement of its existing 4G coverage. However, Birla did not disclose a specific timeline for the 5G rollout.
Vodafone Idea has faced challenges, with over 1.3 million subscribers leaving in July, as indicated by the latest data from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). Earlier in April and May, the company had also experienced a loss of 3 million subscribers. This subscriber loss has raised concerns, as other telecom operators like Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel have already completed significant 5G deployments in various parts of India.
While addressing the audience at the India Mobile Congress 2023, Birla mentioned that “Over the past years, the Voda Idea team has worked to develop a core network for 5G deployment. Vodafone Idea will initiate substantial investments for 5G rollouts.”
The company reported a net loss of ₹8,737.9 crore in the most recent quarter, which exceeded expectations, primarily due to higher-than-anticipated taxes. Vodafone Idea had made a tax provision of ₹822 crore following a recent Supreme Court judgment, which categorized license fees paid to the Department of Telecom since July 1999 as capital expenditure rather than revenue expenditure.
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The Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) showed growth, reaching ₹142, a 2% increase from the previous quarter. Vodafone Idea’s shares are currently trading at ₹10.75 without significant changes.
